Brandi's Blog
Brandi’s Blog from The Youth Olympic Games In Singapore
Greetings from Singapore…..
Have you ever gone to a place where your mental picture didn’t match the actual picture when you arrived? This is the experience I am having in Singapore. I have been here now for two days, which is nearly as long as it took me to get here. But, it has all been worth the travel. I have learned so much about what Singapore is about, and who lives on the island of 326 kilometers. For example, Singaporeans are made up of mostly Chinese, then Malaya, and Indians. The official language is English, followed by either Chinese or Malaya, depending mostly on what your family ethnicity is. Religion of all kinds are present and welcome. Right now is Ramadan so the Muslims on the island, which has a population of 4.5 million, are fasting during the day and celebrating at night. In specific sections of town, the streets are adorned with lights, decorations and vendors of all kind. My local liaison said that the community at large joins in to celebrate at night. That philosophy of celebration is what seems to be the essence of the people here. They are friendly, happy, and so gracious. I have seen 4 soccer matches, been to the Horticultural Park with athletes from Ukraine, Seychelles, USA, Lesotho, Japan as well as visited Little India and the Malay Village. Everywhere I go, I am first still surprised to hear so much English as well as constantly reminded of how kind everyone is. If the general population wasn’t enough to make you feel warm and fuzzy, the ideals of the Olympics, sportsmanship, competition, striving for your personal best, are ever present here with the Youth Olympians. If there ever was a case of “it is not whether you win or lose but how you play the game”, this tournament is the example. That is not to say that the athletes aren’t thrilled to win a medal, or desire one and perhaps are disappointed in winning second, but to be the FIRST group, the HISTORIC FIRST group at that, to participate is much more monumental. After all, they are not just representing themselves or their countries. Each and every one represent the PROMISE of what our young people can learn and achieve as a global community through fair play, honest competition, respect of the game and the opponent as well as hard work which is what our world needs most right now. Like the Horticulturalist said today, the health of the planet is decided upon the decisions we make everyday. So the theme of this trip is, if as Athlete Role Models we can help our young people realize that they can make positive strides everyday to be the change that the world needs for the better, the Youth Olympic Games are a success. So to all of you at home, live like everyday you are an Olympian. I have been reminded that is what I need to do as well.
Cheers!
And congratulations to Chile, the Youth Olympic Games Women’s Football Gold Medalists.
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Very interesting, I am also surprise that the official language is English.
Always remember you are a GREAT OLYMPIAN and are doing great things for girls everywhere.
Posted: 08/28/2010 @ 11:15
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